SINGAPORE, June 2 (Xinhua) -- The fifth Asia Security Summit, also known as
the Shangri-la Dialogue, organized by the London-based International Institute
for Strategic Studies (IISS) opened here Friday night.
Some 250 delegates from more than 20 countries and regions in Asia Pacific, North
America and Europe including China, India, theUnited States, Britain, Japan, the
Republic of Korea and Australiaare participating in the three-day event.
They are expected to exchange views on issues such as the U.S. and Asia's
emerging security architecture, deploying forces for international security,
constructing a regional security community,as well as maritime security
cooperation and challenges of force modernization.
Eminent participants include U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld,
Indian Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Australian Minister for Defense
Brendan Nelson, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Najib
Razak, South Korean Defense Minister Yoon Kwang Ung and Singapore's Defense
Minister Teo Chee Hean.
Delivering a keynote address at the opening reception, Singapore's Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that the trend within Asia is towards greater
economic cooperation, and hence a stable, more secure regional order.
"The trans-Pacific link continues to be of vital importance today, but a
new framework of regional cooperation that reflects the growing intra-regional
trade, investment and people linkages is emerging," Lee noted, adding that the
changes will have strategic and security implications for regional countries.
Taking China as an example, Lee said that China has been participating in
regional fora actively and has become the largesttrading partner of many Asian
countries including Japan and South Korea, and the second largest trading
partner of India.
In his speech, Lee also warned that while strengthening intra-regional
cooperation, Asia should always be part of the global economy instead of a
closed trading bloc.
On Friday, the IISS also launched a book entitled The Military Balance
2006, an annual assessment of the military capabilities and defense economics of
169 countries with "region-by-region analysis of the major military and economic
trends and developments affecting defense and security policies and the tradein
weapons and other military equipment."
The annual summit meeting has been held at Singapore's Shangri-la hotel
since its inauguration in 2002. Enditem
